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28 Feb 2013

After enduring a quarter of a
century together, a wedded couple could achieve stardom and be read about in
history books for generations to come.

designbuilt-network.com

The Inspiration Mars Foundation
plans to send a middle-aged married couple into space—this one a round trip to
Mars and back. Fifty years ago on Christmas Eve 1968, during the Opollo 8's
first circumnavigation of the moon, the whole world listened to astronauts'
reflections while looking down at the Earth from space. The foundation intends
to start its one-and-a-half-year mission in January 2018 if it can raise enough
funds. Read the article here.

They plan to choose an older
couple whose relationship would be able to withstand the stress of living in a
confined environment for two years. During the selection process, they will
look for a resilient couple that would be able to maintain a happy upbeat
attitude in the face of adversity. Even carefully screened individuals are
likely to suffer from psychological problems from a prolonged space mission. People
find long periods of isolation very challenging. In theory, living close to
someone you truly cared for would help.

mars.jpl.nasa.gov

Even though the couple would
receive extensive training and would be able to draw on psychological support
from mission control throughout the mission, there would be no getting off the
spacecraft—they must stay for the duration of the trip.

I don't know about you, but
wouldn't look forward to being cramped up with my loved-one for two years
without enough room to even wear a space-suit, recycling pee and eating dried
food. No matter how close, any married couple has their disagreements. My
husband and I are generally harmonious, but a small thing can set off a bomb
which will drive us apart until we work through the problem. All pleasure would
be gone from life—eating, entertainment and a stroll in the park to contact nature.

27 Feb 2013

In Europe, the plunder of the ocean for wild fish continues. See
the whole sad story here.
The sea exemplifies the world's on-going failure to manage shared natural
resources.

public-domain-image.com

Despite mass public pressure by
campaigners, some countries are acting like selfish, bullying children, wanting
to take everything in reach.

There's widespread agreement among
nations on the need to conserve fish
stocks but often disagreement on the details of how to do it. And the need for harmony
in the European Union process allows a handful of Mediterranean countries to
put the immediate interests of fishing
crews before the fish stocks themselves. It all means that globally about 85% of
stocks are said to be fully exploited, over-exploited, depleted or
slowly recovering. The US, Australia and the UK have created marine reserves to
protect their shores.

news.discovery.com

I'm stunned that the EU ministers
continue to argue over this issue. Almost a quarter of all catches go back overboard dead because they are
not the fish the crews intended to catch. They've agreed to phase out the
controversial practice of dumping unwanted fish, which is a step in the right
direction, yet w a UK trial uses CCTV on fishing boats to crack down on
discards, yet Spain, France and Portugal will be allowed to discard 9%,
shrinking to 7%. The British government, one of the campaigners for change,
said it was disappointed that the ban was not absolute, but that last night’s
result was an historic victory to end a scandalous policy.

And God said to them, “Be fruitful
and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish
of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that
moves on the earth.”

With the world's resources
depleting, we can't afford to squander her riches.

26 Feb 2013

U.K. researchers have found that
sleep deprivation dramatically alters the body. So, not only do those people
who don't get a good night's sleep walk around like zombies half the time, but
their body is changing too.

www.nutritionalsupplimentproduct.com

Heart disease, diabetes, obesity
and poor brain function have all been linked to substandard sleep. Tests
compared the blood of 26 people after they had had plenty of sleep, up to 10
hours each night for a week, with the results with samples after a week of
fewer than six hours a night. More than 700 protein-building genes were altered
by the shift—they produced less.

A run of poor sleep can affect the
internal workings of the immune system and how the body responds to damage and
stress.

Tests are good—no doubt about
that. However, at the moment there is no cure. Scientists are working towards finding
a drug that could eliminate the effects of sleep deprivation. Sleep accentuates
regeneration of the immune, nervous, skeletal and muscular systems in the body.

www.thehealthsuccesssite.com

I have always been a good sleeper, as were my children. Maybe
they inherit sleep patterns from their mothers. Scientists say that babies can
decipher speech as early as three months before birth. I'm sure they pick up
stress or calm from their mother too.

On the other hand, my husband
doesn't sleep well. He tosses and turns to get comfortable, has violent dreams
where he kicks and shouts and invariably catches up on missed zzzzs in the
morning.

This works well for me, allowing
me free time to write my blog and carry on writing my books. I wake bright and
fresh with a positive outlook and cheerful disposition. I follow a routine to
carry me through a productive morning. When I greet Mr. Grumpy-head with a kiss
and a reassuring rub on the shoulder, he begins to brighten. I learned this one
morning last week when he asked me what was the matter. That took me aback.
When asked what he meant, he said, "You're always so cheerful in the
morning."

So, unable to help my own husband,
I have no advice to offer all the bad sleepers. I can only add that my conscience
is clear, my outlook positive and my trust in goodness, God, and a higher power,
intact.